Consultancy 2.0

Consultancy 2.0 seeks to create a new kind of relationship between consultants and clients - one that goes beyond the usual transactional elements of such collaborations and explores an approach which brings shared rewards from sharing costs.

The client is Faber & Faber, the UK's largest independent publisher. To retain its position, it is responding to the seismic changes in both marketplace and technology by seeking new sources of income beyond the traditional business of selling books. Faber Academy is the publisher's creative writing 'hothouse' where budding writers can seek advice from established authors.

Consultancy 2.0 brings together live|work and Faber Academy to investigate how to build a scalable and profitable service - based on distance learning courses in creative writing - which would grow a healthy customer base independent of book sales.

Faber Academy and live|work first identified what kind of service they could develop by capturing the needs and motivations of users. They then developed it through three iterations of the experience prototype and finally refined it using a service blueprint.

By reducing the risk of innovation in the early stages of developing a new service, Consultancy 2.0 provided an optimal opportunity for both Faber Academy and live|work to benefit. Faber Academy has a feasible and viable business case for the development of the new service, and live|work will remain involved with the project and share in its success.

As the service undergoes user-testing as a second prototype, Faber & Faber and live|work have expressed their satisfaction with Consultancy 2.0's fresh approach to collaboration. Both intend to continue to use it in the future.